August 22nd, Wednesday – Two Small Improvements; Valley Forge National Historical Park

What in the world was that coming through the solarium window?  Could it be?  Maybe?  It was, it was, the sun shining bright!  No more rain nor thunder, nor lightning.  Even Marti was happy.  No more need to hide under the table.  But, of course, you knew it couldn’t last.  And it didn’t.  By late afternoon the rain was back.  But only briefly

Not much on the agenda today.  I’m behind in my monthly maintenance but as soon as I can get a break in the weather, and I’m home for several hours I’ll get caught up.  We did, however, address two issues today.

As with most folks who live in an RV, they know the refrigerator always seems to be just a tad too small.  Especially when you start to fill it with various beverages needed to keep the troops happy.  My sister recommended an Ozark Cooler which she purchased some time ago as the one to go to.  So, off to Wally World today and we now have a 26-quart cooler just for beverages.  Nice thing is it fits right behind the driver’s seat so no having to go outside for a cold one.  We’ll keep it full of ice and observe what happens.

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Next issue addressed was the data issue.  I never want to go through what I did the other night with the loss of every folder and file.  So, while at Wally World, I purchased a one terabyte external hard drive that does a continuous back up.  So anytime I add, delete or edit a file or folder it is immediately backed up to the external hard drive.  Sweet.

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OK, let’s go back to Valley Forge and finish our tour.  We’ll begin with the Visitor’s Center and what we learned there.

On December 19, 1777, 12,000 soldiers and women and children marched into Valley Forge and began to build what would become the fourth largest city in America, with 1500 log huts and two miles of fortifications.  Lasting six months, the encampment brought together men, women, and children of all ages, from all walks of life, of every occupation, from different ethnic backgrounds, and from various religions.

Unfortunately, disease swept through the encampment, when men from far-flung geographical areas were exposed to sickness from which they had little immunity.  By the end of the encampment nearly two thousand men had died of disease.

Through the winter the soldiers performed their duties in the face of hardship as they struggled with the shortage of food, inadequate clothing, erratic pay, sickness, and the winter weather.

A typical soldier’s day consisted of training, building fortifications, cooking, eating and sleeping.  Soldiers took turns performing the hard tasks of guard duty and patrol.  Cooking alone required foraging for wood, collecting water and preparing the rations.

Once we had made our way through the Visitor’s Center it was now time to take the ten-mile self-guided auto encampment tour.  There were 9 stops, all total.  I went over some of the stops yesterday.

The first stop on the tour was a stop at the site of the Muhlenberg Brigade.  Here we learned about Peter Muhlenberg: The Fighting Parson.  He was a member of a prominent Pennsylvania German family.  He served as a minister to a community of German-Americans in Virginia.  A natural leader he was recruited by General Washington and was able to enlist 300 men in a day.  He later served as a senator from Pennsylvania.

Moving along we came to the National Memorial Arch.  Dedicated in 1917, the Arch honors the soldiers perseverance and expresses hope for the future.

Another stop on the tour was where General Henry Knox kept most of the encampment’s cannons.  From here they could be moved quickly to any threatened area of the encampment.

The last stop on the auto tour was the Washington Memorial Chapel.  This active Episcopal parish honors soldiers of the American Revolution.

So we have now come to the end of our tour of Valley Forge.  Of all the places associated with the American War for Independence, perhaps none has come to symbolize perseverance and sacrifice more than Valley Forge.  Despite the hardships that Washington and his men suffered here they left as a unified professional military organization that ultimately enabled the  Continental Army to triumph over the British.

I believe we are all caught up now.  Tomorrow will be a wishy washy day and a day to do monthly maintenance.  We’re amazed at how much we’ve been able to do while here in Carlisle.  We’ve had time to visit with some very dear friends – Hogaie and Max and Mark and Susan; we had a wonderful weekend with Amanda; we let the inner child loose at Chocolate World; and, finally we visited and learned so much more about our great nation during our visit at the Valley Forge National Historic Park.  All of this was made even better because we got to do it together traveling along side by side, hand in hand.

Thanks for joining us today.   We hope your day was as great as ours.  Always remember to make the most of every precious minute that God gives you each and every day.  We never to get to live even one of them over again so grab hold of each minute and treasure it.  In closing a thought for each of us to ponder:

As always,  if you are coming to the end of your day with concerns and worries, let me suggest that you turn them over to God.  After all, He is going to be up all night so why not let him handle them for you.

Time now for our evening prayers and eventually some shut-eye.  Till tomorrow.

These are the voyages of  Graybeard and it’s occupants, four paws and two humans.  Our continuing mission: to explore as many new states as possible, to seek out new acquaintances and make new friends, to boldly go where we have not been before